Missouri couple named Powerball winner

November 30, 2012News Extra

DEARBORN, Mo. — A 52-year-old Missouri mechanic and his wife claimed their share today of the record $588 million Powerball jackpot.

Lottery officials sent a statement today announcing that Mark and Cindy Hill, of Dearborn, held one of two winning tickets for the nation’s biggest Powerball jackpot.

The Hills will split the $588 million prize with whoever holds a winning ticket sold at a convenience store in suburban Phoenix. No one has come forward yet with the Arizona ticket, lottery officials said.

The $587.5 million payout, which represents the second-largest jackpot in U.S. history, set off a nationwide buying frenzy, with tickets at one point selling at nearly 130,000 per minute. Before Wednesday’s winners, the jackpot had rolled over 16 consecutive times without someone hitting the jackpot.

Lottery officials’ announcement that the Hills had won only confirmed what many residents in Dearborn, a town of about 500 about 40 miles north of Kansas City already knew.

Lottery officials said Thursday that one winning ticket had been sold at a Trex Mart gas station and convenience store on the edge of town, and Mark Hill’s name circulated quickly. While he and his wife did not speak to reporters, friends and relatives identified Mark Hill as the winner.